Get Off the Throne:
How To Handle Power-Hungry Leaders
By Butch Oxendine, Editor-in-Chief
Excerpted
with permission from The
Student Leader. Copyright © 1998 Oxendine Publishing,
Inc. All rights reserved
What do you do when one of your group's leaders thinks he's
a king, refuses to listen to suggestions, and isn't willing
to get his hands dirty with menial tasks? As you stand with
mouth agape, he takes credit for everything that goes right,
blames you for everything that goes wrong, yet has little to
do with the actual work that makes your projects or events run
smoothly. You probably feel like strangling him — or worse.
When you run into a student who loves being in the spotlight,
he probably is more interested in glorifying his image than
doing the sometimes menial, boring work necessary to make a
group or event successful. "Several years ago, the leader
of our Student Action Board repeatedly didn't show up for meetings,
yet complained when things didn't get done and took credit for
projects that were successful," says JoAnn Morlan, activities
coordinator at Des Moines Area Community College-Carroll Campus
in Iowa. "He consistently violated policies and the members
attempted to talk to him, but he chose to ignore their warnings,
so they had to remove him."
If you run into this type of leader, your group's morale likely
will take a beating, and fellow members could become resentful
or might quit. Here are some tips to help you avoid having to
give your leader the boot to get your group back on track.
1. Tell the leader you're concerned, but
don't be insulting. "Keep from personally attacking them,
but be as honest as possible. It's a fine line, but it can
be done," says William Murray, Student Government Association
president at the University of Memphis. "Say, `I've heard
a lot of people are frustrated, partly with you.' The easiest
way to get them talking about changes is to accept some of
the blame. Unless the followers and leader are working together,
you're as much at fault as he is."
"First, attempt to have a meeting without the advisor
present, so they won't feel like they're getting into trouble,"
says Cathy Ingram, director of student activities at the College
of Mount St. Vincent in New York. "Talk to them one on
one, instead of issuing a reprimand. Hopefully, you'll help
them see where they can improve. They sometimes don't realize
how they're coming across. The last resort is to say, `Stop
what you're doing or else.'"
2. Offer your comments confidentially as
a friend rather than as a competitor. "You can give club
leaders a reality check," Ingram says. "Ask how
much of their membership is involved in decision-making and
who's coming up with new ideas. If they're answering these
questions, `Me, me, me,' there's a problem."
3. Rehearse what you want to say. "Before
you confront this person, run it by someone neutral who you
can trust," says Tammy Green, director of student activities
at Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania. "Practice
what you're going to say to make sure your tone isn't putting
them on the defensive. Don't make it a personality attack.
"Make sure you have specific examples, not a laundry
list of what they've done wrong," Green says, "but
examples where in this situation you believe you're not effective
as an organization. There has to be some things that this
person is doing well, and you can identify these."
4. Carefully consider if you want to have
a written record of your complaint. "If your problems
with the leader are about procedural guidelines that are being
abused, put your concerns in writing," says Shari Gresham,
interim director of student activities and organizations at
the University of Arkansas-Monticello. "Avoid documenting
subjective concerns like personality problems." Once
you've written the letter, put it away for 24 hours, and then
see if it really says what you intended. Keep a copy in your
file, and give one to your advisor.
5. Don't gossip — keep your comments
and complaints within the group, or you'll damage your reputation
and your group's image. "Many times, students don't realize
the potential damage that can be caused by talking about the
group outside of a constructive process for dealing with issues,"
says Wilda Jones, direc-tor of student activities and the
Runyan Center at Earlham College in Indiana. "It's appropriate
to talk about disagreements, but you need to have a process
to do that. If it's not done to strengthen the group, it can
hurt its' reputation."
6. As a last resort, prepare to issue an
ultimatum. "Get your advisor to do the dirty work, to
say, 'Shape up or you're out,'" says David Coffey, president
of the Colorado College Campus Association. "Refer to
your charter, and see what your options are to boot this person.
Usually there are rules you can use, like if they don't show
up for meetings, or you can vote to have new elections since
most groups are run democratically."
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Permission is granted for organizations to download and reprint this article. Reprints must provide full acknowledgment of source, as provided:
Excerpted with
permission from The Student
Leader. Copyright © 1998 Oxendine Publishing, Inc.
All rights reserved.
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